Letter 18 (page 1)

10^th December 2006

Dear everyone,

Let's get straight to it: we've moved.

Though some of our friends in Denver asked if our stated intention to move to the East Coast was a threat or a promise, we merely wanted to extend our working holiday. What a holiday it's been! We only came for a year but somehow that stretched into 11 and all of them were in Denver. While it was a great base from which to see the natural beauty of the West, it was time for a change of scenery and the opportunity to see architecture, history, museums and galleries. And the ocean. I was also concerned that like someone about to fall asleep on the sofa, if we didn't move soon, we would be stuck forever.

Lan had been applying for jobs in various cities, but was offered a job in Washington starting at the end of February. Once again, our small station wagon proved a mighty cargo carrier as we transported a home starter-kit cross-country. Once again, we marveled at the flatness of southern Indiana.

I flew home and began looking for a new job and tidying up our affairs in Denver. During this time, I visited Lan a few times including during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Japan donated 3,000 trees in 1912 and in April 2006, the area around the major memorials was ablaze in pink!^Note 1

To my immense relief, I was able to find a new job relatively quickly as the experience I'd gained at Wall St On Demand was quite worthwhile. I'd also gained some wonderful friends so it was hard to say good bye. I'd become so close to so many people.

Anyway, I drove over in mid-May in a truck with a 5m/16ft cargo box with all our stuff. Loading was hard but the drive was easy. I was in awe of the flatness of southern Illinois—and also the cost to refuel since I managed only 10mpg or 23L/100km.

The Motley Fool is an interesting company to work for^Note 2. While most companies in the financial services industry try to project a sophisticated yet conservative image through their web sites, the Fool sets out to “educate, amuse & enrich”. Essentially we sell investment newsletters but the atmosphere on the site and in the office is casual to the point of being irreverent. There are pizza and cake days every month and there was a mini-golf tournament in the office. It's also a joy to take the train to work!

After briefly sharing an apartment, Lan found a nice one for us in Alexandria, Virginia that is just 3km/2 miles from her new job and 8km/5 miles from mine. Real estate prices appear to have tripled in the 5 years before we arrived but rents have not so we're waiting for the bubble to fully burst before we buy anything.

Next: Sightseeing